Raid (Episode)
Episode Two, Season One of HALO. Righto, here goes! 'Note: '''There are still POV switches, so watch out for those coded things! Raid I wonder what it takes to try? The sky was a milky blue as Elm exited her den for what she hoped was the last time. Her heart was still hearing from saying goodbye to her mother. She would never forget the selfless, fiercely proud look in Swan’s blue eyes. ''I’m with you always, Elm. Remember that. ''Her mother’s gentle, calm voice surged through her blood. The HALO warriors had told her to meet them by the Thunderpath as the first rays of the sun touched the sky. Elm had departed early, she’d never forgive herself if she were late. ''This is the chance of a lifetime. You better not blow it. ''She shuddered at the thought of missing the oppurtunity. Although she was thinking, Elm was fully alert. All kinds of dangers were lurking in the pre-dawn light. Her ears flicked as a faint moan echoed from over the hills, but it sounded too far away to be a threat. She didn’t know what it was and didn’t care to know. The tortoiseshell quickened her pace as the sky turned brighter. The hills dipped and rose before her, but she could see the thin black line that was the Thunderpath. ''Good. ''That meant she was on time. From her vantage point, she could see the flat section of burnt ground that was the creatively named Burn. As always, the smokey visions filled her head. She had spent many a day there wondering why the world had taken her family away from her, but of course had no answers. ''Now I can do something for them. Not avenge, I guess, but I can show them that their sacrifices weren’t in vain. ''She sent a quick prayer of thanks to her father and dead sisters before the hills hid the Burn from view. --- Nothing eventful happened along the way except for the ghastly sight of a cat’s mangled corpse. An image of her baby sister Lily passed through her mind, but she gritted her teeth and pushed it away. Trying hard not to become overwhelmed by frief, Elm didn't notice when she entered the pine copse. The smell of the pines soon alerted her. She picked her way to the edge of the Thunderpath. Elm didn’t know what to expect, but dead silence wasn’t one of them. ''Isn’t someone supposed to be waiting for me…? She peered anxiously into the shrubs and looked above into the trees, but saw nothing. Then something tapped her on the shoulder and she screamed. At once, the thing bowled her over and placed a paw over her mouth. Elm writhed in terror, meeting the emotionless gaze of a dark grey tom with stormy grey eyes. Her pulse slowed. There were so many things that could have jumped on her, cannibals, insane cats who wanted to eat her brain, or some poor hungry cat who thought she was a fox. This cat was definitely sane. And there was only one explanation for who he could be. “ Are you from-” “ Quiet, Recruit. Do not speak unless I tell you to. You will follow me and stay absolutely quiet. There are dangerous things in these woods.” His voice was overly calm and patient, as if he were talking to a kit. The thought sent indignation surging through Elm. She pushed off his paw and scrambled to her feet. Her intention was to glare at him in the eye, but she found his dark gaze so intense she was forced to avert her own. “ I know that,” she mumbled, sounding less intimidating than she thought she would. “ We’ll see,” the tom said coolly. Elm was surprised at how… mean… he was. Weren’t HALO cats supposed to be nice? “ You coming?” “ What? Oh, yeah,” Elm shook herself out of her thoughts and followed the tom as he slipped between the trees. —— Contrasting from the tom’s noiseless arrival, the place where he took her was humming with noise. It was enclosed in a circle of thick shrubs that looked deliberately placed, but that wasn't possible. The tom pulled one aside and gestured for Elm to go in. She cast an uncertain glance at the hazy blue sky before vanishing in. The sight that awaited her wasn't actually that scary. Dozens of cats milled around, some flexing claws, other shifting uncertainly. But shining brightly in the gaze of all of them was a fierce happiness and determination. They all want to get into paradise. '' Elm took a few steps forward, looking around aimlessly. She was startled and a bit regretful when she caught the eye of a big white she-cat. “ Hey there,” the she-cat boomed. Elm winced as she strode forwards. ''If we’re competing, I don’t stand a chance against her. ''The she cat halted near Elm. Her girth completely spanned Elm’s. “ Er, hello,” Elm squirmed. The she-cat narrowed her eyes. “ So you’re on of my opponents,” she sounded disinterested as she scanned the cats around them. “ Hmph. I guess there’s no harm being friends if we aren’t going to be competition.” The she-cat’s frankness disturbed Elm. She felt the first few walls of dislike build up inside of her. “ Well, yeah, I mean, if you want to?” Elm was embarrassed that her voice didn’t take on the casual, I-don’t-really-care mood that she wanted it to. In order to cover up her mistake, she said: “ My name’s Elm. What’s yours?” “ Sleet.” The white cat did a quick left-right. Somehow, the gesture made Elm uncomfortable. She pretended to see something and excused herself, quickening her pace to put as much distance between her and Sleet as possible. She never got a chance to talk to anyone else, because a wiry honey brown she-cat scrambled up one of the trees and let out a commanding yowl. The cats stopped moving and tipped their heads back to look at her. “ All Recruits assemble in a line in order of hight, please,” her voice was thin and sounded kind of whiny. ''But, observed Elm,'' she sounds like she commands respect''. Maybe I can be like that one day. The thought made her feel warm inside. She moved to join the raggedly forming line, trying to make sense of it. “ Tallest here! Feather marks the middle, and that bush is the shortest!” Sleet’s loud voice orders. Some cats muttered and cast dark glances at her, but they followed her order. Elm didn’t see any other option, so she slid in somewhere around the middle and patiently fixed her gaze on the honey furred she-cat. The cat waited for the jostling and hissing to stop before continuing. “ As you know, all of you have the potential to be a Recruit for HALO. Some of you have more than others, so we will be assessing who is worth to join our ranks. We will only be accepting five new recruits, so try your best!” Five recruits? ''Elm gasped. There must have been thirty-some cats here! “ Everything from the line exercise was a test,” at the sound of her voice, cats quieted down. ''A test? Really? “ …and there will be many more. We will let you know who will be accepted by midday. Thank you!” the she-cat scrambled down the tree, replaced by the tom who had received Elm earlier. “ Alright, listen up! We will begin a drilling exercise. You all will number off, starting from 1, and ending at seven. We are testing how you project your voices as well! Sleet, you start.” “ One!” her voice pretty much shook the clouds from the sky. “ Two!” the voice next to hers was soft and meek. “ Three!” tough, kind of like Sleet. “ Four!” scared. “ Five!” squeak. “ Six!” same. “ Seven!” the cat next to Elm belted. Nervousness tickled at her paws as Elm tipped her muzzle back and called out: “ One!” Am I partners with Sleet now? Her voice came out uncertain and wavering. Oh man, I’m really blowing it. Her stomach clenched. The cats kept numbering off, and when they finished the grey tom directed each group to a different area. Sleet and her Ones were to stay where they were. Elm shuffled her paws as she padded slowly over to Sleet. They were joined by a confident looking tabby and a small scared ginger tom. “ Hi! I’m Sleet!” Sleet thundered. Before Elm could say anything, Sleet said: “ This is Elm!” Elm bit her lip in annoyance but decided not to say anything. She needed to save her energy. As Sleet stole her one chance for a good first impression, the tabby stranger curled her lip. She had a lofty look in her amber eyes. “ I think Elm can introduce herself,” even as she said this, there was no warmth in her meow. She fixed her astute stare on Sleet. The white cat stared back in defense. Tabby cleared her throat. “ I am Leopard. And who are you?” she turned and spoke to the ginger tom. He seemed to wither under her stare. “ I’m… Geg? I mean, Egg.” He stuttered and ducked his head shyly. Elm flashed him a reassuring look while Leopard nodded absently. “ Okay, Egg, Elm, and Sleet. Now what do we do?”'' Who is she talking to?'' “ You get into partners and fight each other. The winners then fight, and the one winner sits at the base of the tree.” All the cats except Leopard jumped. Elm’s heart raced and she swallowed. Gotta get used to those HALO cats creeping around. “ Thanks,” Leopard said in her cool voice. She swept her gaze over the group. ''You need to take charge. Pick a partner or something! They want you to be a leader! '' “ Umm, I’ll take…” Elm began. Leopard quickly overrode her. “ Elm, you be my partner. That’s what you were going to say, wasn’t it.” It was a statement. “ Er, yeah,” Elm said, seeing no other way out. You idiot! You could have said you chose another cat, but you made yourself seem submissive! She mentally cursed herself a million times. Panic began to chill up her spine. She needed this spot in HALO! “ And I’ll take Egg,” Sleet growled. Her eyes had lost their friendly edge and were now hard. Leopard nodded stiffly and stepped away from the group. Elm suddenly had a desperate idea. “ Let’s fight here,” she said, stepping in the opposite direction. “ What did you say?” Leopard appeared to be snapping back to reality. “ Er, nothing,” Elm hurried forwards to join the she-cat. “ So I guess you- or I- could give a signal-” In a flash, Leopard leapt at her and dove for her legs. Elm gasped as she fell hard onto the ground. She managed to get a lucky hit with one of her flailing feet and heard Leopard’s hiss. This gave her the chance to stand up again and try and find an opening in the tabby’s defense. But Leopard blocked her swipe and instead took a hit at her chest. Elm growled and tried to bite down on the paw but Leopard snatched it back as her teeth clicked shut on empty air. No no no, I can’t loose! Elm made a desperate lunge at Leopard. The lunge was misjudged in her haste. Leopard easily pinned her down and won. Without a second glance, the she-cat strode away to where Sleet was waiting. Elm didn’t even want to watch them. She closed her eyes and just pressed her face into the dirt. The ground felt hard and cold. Defeat and self-anger rushed over her and stabbed angrily at her with their claws.'' I am such a failure. What have I done? Am I really this useless?'' Her sad thoughts were disrupted by Leopard’s scream. She turned around and saw the she-cat pinned to the earth below Sleet. Her eyes widened. She’d thought Leopard was the better fighter! “ I’ll get you back, one day,” Leopard roughly shoved Sleet off her. The two cats glared at each other for a long time. “ Okay, enough!” the tom called out. Activity stopped once again. “ Winners, meet me in the center of the clearing. Losers go with Wing.” Wing? Oh, he means the she-cat. Did I miss names or something? Elm thought bleakly, searching for the honey-colored she-cat. Leopard hauled herself to her paws and stalked away stiffly, heading towards Wing. Elm followed. She would not screw this one up. “ This is the hunting test,” Wing was saying as Elm joined. “ We just want to asses how you hunt. There’s plenty of prey in this clearing, so go for it.” In the crowd, Elm noticed Egg suddenly perking up and looking confident. She felt the same. Hunting! I’m good at this! ''Elm immediately made a beeline for an old log. ''Prey usually hangs around to eat the bugs. ''To her delight, she caught the sound of mice. With a swift pounce, Elm snapped the neck of one and held it up proudly. As the hunting assesement finished, Elm surveyed her catch of three pidgeons and the family of mice proudly. Her heart quickly sank as she realized everyone had caught the same amount... if not more. --- The tests went on and on, Elm falling behind her fellow potential-recruits all the time. She was feeling hopeless. Her stomach turned as the sun reached the center of the sky. ''It’s midday. Oh no, they are going to announce the Recruits! ''She closed her eyes and prayed. ''Please, whoever controls my life. I need this. I need to avenge my family, I need to become great for my mother! “ All cats assemble below for the announcement!” Wing’s thin but clear voice commanded. Muttering and growling rose from the cats as they obeyed. Elm could almost feel the tension. Fear scent filled and clouded the air. It was so thick and strong that Elm nearly chocked. Her vision was spiraling, the fear scent surrounding her. Her breathing quickened and her heart began beating at an alarming pace. I'' don’t know if I stand a chance but there’s nothing I want more….'' “ Thank you for joining us today. You have all tried hard, and now we will announce the five recruits joining our ranks today. The list is as follows…” Elm could almost hear the cats inhaling. “ The first Recruit is Leopard. Congratulations. Your composure and extraordinary skill have earned you your place with us today. ” “ What?!” Sleet cried. She shot to her feet and glared at the brown tabby. Elm spotted a raised head with smug glowing eyes. That’s one spot taken… “ The second Recruit is Feather,” that’s the middle-height cat. A dark smokey tabby shrugged modestly though her eyes were glowing. “ Congratulations. Your agile mind and fierce battle skill earned you a place with us today.” “ The third Recruit is Flash. Your speed and exemplary talent has earned you a place with us today.” It’s all extraordinary talent or skill or something. I don’t have any of that! “ The fourth Recruit is Grey…” the HALO cat said something about Grey’s perfection but Elm wasn’t listening. She was feeling her throat tighten up and constrict her breathing. The tension was surging through her veins. “ The fifth Recruit is…” please, please, please… “… Egg. For his incredible hunting skill.” Elm’s heart plummeted down into her paws. Disbelief, anger, complete hopelessness. Like every single light in her world had been darkened. Sleet’s reaction was exactly what Elm felt. The big white she-cat had stood up on her paws, yowling but no one would listen. Elm watched as Wing marched over to her and glared at her steely in the eyes. Why Egg? What hunting skill? she remembered the small tom’s relieved look when it was announced he’d be hunting. Did I really loose to a… midget like that? ''She searched the crowd for him, feeling something welling up inside of her. Her eyes stung like tears were about to fall. Gone is that one chance. The one chance she blew miserably! A sob broke free from her throat. She had a desperate thought that she might talk to someone, try and explain, but when she looked around Wing and the grey tom had vanished. And all the new Recruits had gone too. —— I wonder what trying takes? Crickets chirped in the warm night breeze. Prime heard the soft murmur of trainees coming from her division’s camp. A division was basically a quarter of the total HALO force. The different division were spread around the area they lived in as to better monitor the rogues living there. Prime belonged to division three. Every division was split further by rank. The trainees had a separate camp, and in this camp they had separate dens based on age, which usually meant litter. “ ‘night, Prime. See you tomorrow morning,” Fling yawned from her place beside Prime and shook herself. Prime felt a rush of excitement. Fling and her sister Moon would be going on the raid with her, and they had received very mysterious and exciting instructions. ''Meet us before dawn at the training crater. Do not wake your siblings, do not exit camp using the main entrance. Most importantly, tell no one where you are going. Do you understand? “ See you then Fling,” Prime whispered and departed off in the direction of her own den. It was an old, mossy log that smelled of earth and, well, moss. It was snug and cozy. The floor was lined with fresh, dry moss and feathers. Trainees from the past had left things there, things like pretty stones, crystalized bark, and mushrooms. It made the den seem more homely, somehow. Prime hated it. She hated how her ears scraped the roof and how it made her feel breathless and trapped. She hated the damp, musty smell. Most of all, she disliked the inhabitants. HALO cats weren’t terribly close to their littermates, Prime pondered as she neared the den. They never mentioned siblings. When she’d asked Smoke if he had any, he’d simply said that he was better off on his own and refused to talk anymore. Prime had heard rumors though, that he used to have a sister. She presumed the sister was dead. It was probably too painful for Smoke to talk about. So she guessed it was normal for animosity and dislike between siblings. She felt protective for hers, sure, because they were so much more naive and helpless than her. Even Moon and Fling, possibly some of the toughest trainees, disliked each other. Prime felt that she and Fling were closer to each other than their own siblings. Prime ducked under the log, feeling claustrophobic and compressed. In the dim light she could make out the shifting forms of her siblings. “ Prime!” a squeal broke from the den, along with the sound of moss crunching. Prime grunted as something slammed into her chest. It felt like a warm, soft ball of fur, smelling soft and kit-like. Despite herself, a warm wave of protectiveness washed over her as she bent down to inspect the furball. It was small and brown, looking fuzzy in shape even though it wasn't a kit. " Hello, Fault," she purred, nuzzling her brother. She gently shuffled him forwards, trying to reach her nest. Her brother... younger than he seemed, naive, innocent... everything Prime had ceased to be. Her brother, an ever present reminder of the little jewels in life. " He can walk by himself, Prime," a petulant voice called from the shadow. Now Crystal was not ''one of the little jewels in life. Prime's sister was a golden she-cat, a solid and strong color that added to her rather large girth. Crystal had beady, green eyes and was basically everything Prime never ''wanted ''to be. Ever since they were a few moons old, Crystal had been jealous of everything Prime did. " I know that. Did you?" Prime snorted, flicking a scrap of moss at Crystal. The thickset she-cat nearly dodged it, but it bounced off the tip of her ear. Prime snorted. " Of course," Crystal said smoothly. " But it must have been a lot of effort on your part. How ''ever ''did you guess? It must have taken sooo long." She bared her teeth in a savage grin. ''Her insults are really bad. She should practice with Fling. '' Prime ignored her sister and gave Fault a reassuring look. The brown tom's green eyes were worried, as they always were when his sisters fought. Crystal let out a disgusted snort. Prime heard the sound of her shifting. Fault hesistated for a bit before dragging his nest in between theirs. Prime's whiskers twitched in amuesment. She and Crystal had a history of clawing each other to bloody bits. " Good night, ''Fault," ''Crystal said selectively, resting her great head on her paws. A flicker of annoyance rose inside Prime. " Good night, ''Fault," she mocked Crystal's deep meow, nudgind her brother gently before curling up. Then, unable to resist one last gag, she said: " How was 'training' today?" That did it. In a flash, Crystal leapt over Fault and tackled Prime down. Fault let out a terrified screech, battering at Crystal with his weak paws. She threw him off. Rage grew inside Prime as she heart the thud of her brother's side hitting the floor. The greater weight of the she-cat sped through the series of movement patterns and systems in Prime's mind. Choosing not to rely on strength, she curled up her legs and sent them rocketing upwards onto Crystal's belly. The she-cat gasped as the air was driven out of her body. Prime took in the weakness quickly and shoved her sister off. " Leave Fault out of this!" she snarled. " You ''keep your snobby little muzzle in your fat fur!" Crystal growled, getting up and glaring pure hatred at Prime. " Fur doesn't grow fat, though it appears that way with you!" Prime dropped to the floor and darted under Crystal again, sinking her teeth into the golden cat's tail. Crystal's yowl of pain was like birdsong. As the larger cat stamped and stomped, Prime jabbed her claws into Crystal's legs, her anger at Crystal growing with each hit. Afraid she would harm her sister severely, Prime gave her a last hit and stomped out of her den. " Prime!" Fault wailed, trying to run past Crystal. Prime spun around and curled her lip at her sister, who was glancing over her shoulder, panting heavily. " You better not hurt a hair on his pelt or I'll flay you!" Prime let her threat hang in the air before stomping away. --- The next morning, Prime and her fellow raiders raced out of the shadows and up the hills. Fling and Moon's long strides matched hers evenly as they raced along at a breakneck speed. The light was blue-ish and early, the sun hadn't even risen. They were on their first raid ever, and Prime was loving it. Smoke had enforced their motto before they left, saying that they were going to root out the cats bringing the society down. He said: ''the stronger we are, the better you carry HALO's pride. Not just my pride, or your friend's pride, but the pride of all of HALO. And some of you here- most of you here- are more than competant to do that. Remember, only the strongest survive! '' " Have you been on one of these before?" Prime asked Fling as she neatly cleared a fallen... something. It looked like hardened black rock. Moon rolled her eyes while Fling answered. " Many, actually." " I've been on more than you," Moon grunted, skirting around a holly bush. She stumbled sideways and knocked into Fling. " Ouch! Stop that!" Fling grumbled, shoving Moon back in return. Her dark grey sister rolled her blue eyes again and regained her footing with lightning speed. " Right!" Smoke's hiss traveled across the ranks and all cats stopped. By some unspoken command, all of the recruits fanned out in a semicircle around him. Prime shot a sideways glance at her friends. Moon and Fling looked bored. " Time to introduce you to one of our most ''critical ''weapons." Smoke turned and picked up a dark stick. He scanned the area quickly before briskly striding up to a black rock. He brought the stick down on it... and wonder of all wonders, It exploded into flame. Prime's breath caught in her throat, heart jumping and hammering at her chest. The hot, sticky heat that rose out of it made her queasy. Every instinct of hers screamed it was wrong, wrong to have fire so close. But through the flames, Smoke seemed calm. He strode over to what appeared to be a clump of dead grass in the hill and kicked it aside with his paw. It revealed a narrow, dark hole that was too big to be a rabbitt's burrow. Prime caught a fleeting scent of cat before Smoke set the burning branch down at the area around it exploded into orange-red flames. " A cat lives there!" she screamed in terror. The HALO cat's eyes turned cold and hard. Terror began to race through Prime. She whirled around and stared at her friends, whimpering. Fling's eyes had taken on a smiliar edge. Moon's eyes were dark as well... they looked almsot ''hungry. ''The dark cat unsheathed her claws. " Get back, Prime. The flames might burn you," Fling said. Prime turned on her friend, legs shaking in her horror. " What about the cat inside? What about-" A loud wail suddenly rose from the den. Every hair on Prime's spine rose. " Places! Hide!" Smoke yowled, ducking behind the screen of flames. Prime could hardly get herself near the flames, but Smoke turned around and pushed her from the behind. The heat singed her whiskers as Prime crouched, trembling, behind the wall of orange fire. ''How can they do this? '' " Here it comes," Moon growled, shifting slightly. A dark shape appeared through the fire, wailing and leaping out of the hole. An ear-shattering scream broke the air as the shape didn't quite clear the flames. " Get into the den!" Smoke growled. Prime watched as her fellow raiders surged past her, leaping high over the fire and into the hole below. She gulped, the agonized screams of the other cat making her heart bleed. " Prime. Come with me." She followed him as he lead her towards the moaning and twisting shape on the grass. Prime closed her eyes in shock as she saw it. The image of burning flesh and pure pain was stamped permanently in her mind. And the cat... bile rose in her throat. It was an old she-cat, bones jutting out of her fur, the scent of age hanging all over her. And then suddenly the moaning stopped. The head flipped to the side and Prime took a step backwards. Clear blue eyes stared at her, muddled and confused. " Elm...?" the voice croaked. ''Who is Elm? '' " I'm not Elm," she said numbly. " No, you aren't," the she-cat seemed to agree resinedly. " Elm wouldn't watch a stranger suffer." Somehow, the words stung at Prime's heart. She looked at Smoke, who was- as usual- without emotion. " Kill her." His growl was low and nasty. Prime's stomach churned. " No! She's old!" the fragile, helpless state of the she-cat made her sick. She imagined her claws slicing through her silky but patchy fur, the neck snapping feebly... she couldn't do it. She just couldn't. " Kill her!" Smoke snapped. " You wanted to prove yourself to me, so do it now. You said you would uphold HALO's honor when you set out on the raid. Now kill the detrimental aspect of society!" " She's a cat!" Prime said feebly, flattening her ears. She began to shake from indecision. ''If I don't kill this cat, I will never be able to succeed. I can't achieve my dreams, I can't get what I've always wanted. I'll... I'll... ''fail. She shuddered. The old cat seemed to be watching this all with a sad look in her eyes. " Do it! You'll fail me and all of HALO if you don't." " I... I...." Prime backed away, trying to block Smoke out. " Imagine what Crystal would say if she knew you were weak." " Weak..." " You would let Fault down. He idolizes you." " Fault..." her brother's adoring gaze swarmed into her vision. How could she see that light vanish from his eyes? ''I can't fail, I can't! How would I live with myself? '' ''How would I live with myself if I killed this old, innocent cat? The thoughts, consequences of each choice, and emotions clashed and swirled in her head until her head pounded. She swayed from side to side, until the she-cat stilled her with a shockingly clear meow. " Do it." " No!" Prime burst, apalled. The silver cat's eyes were determind and hard. " This will teach my daughter the truth. Kill me." " You see, Prime?" Smoke said smoothly. " Even this cat sees the sense. Do you want to fail me, Prime?" "N..no." " Do you want to fail HALO, Prime?" " Smoke..." " Do you want to fail us all?!" " No!" " Then do it!" Prime didn't know what happened. Something foreign took control of her. Before her conscience regained control, she raced forwards towards Smoke and turned to the right, blankly thinking about a movement pattern. With a loud crack, the silver cat's neck fell limp and her eyes went dull. Prime's vision suddenly flashed, and she reeled backwards. The she-cat's broken body and her bloody paws could only mean one thing... she'd.... " What have I done?!" Vomit spilled over her paws. --- Have I taken up all my tries? The scent of smoke and burning was familiar to Elm's imagination. However, it made alarm bells ring when she heard it in real life. Coming up the hill to her home, dragging her paws, enveloped in a cloud of despair and frustration. At the thought of seeing her mother again, an immeasurable shame filling her mind. How was she going to tell Swan she failed? The scent of smoke jolted her back to reality. ''We haven't had a burning in a while. ''Where was it coming from? She frowned, sniffing the air. It was coming from just over the hills... no. Swan didn't do anything to anybody. The dread made her paws heavy and her stomach turn. She quickened to a trot and began to climb the hill faster. Her mind tried to appease her that this couldn't happen, but common sense told her this was wrong. ''Oh, Swam, I hope you're okay, hope they didn't hurt you... ''she reached the crest and looked down. A silvery-black stretch of land was where her home used to be. Elm staggered forwards as if someone had punched her in the chest. ''No... no... ''she stumbled towards home, grief welling like the flickering flames in the charred soil. The scent of cats was thick in the air, as was that of blood. " Swan?" she called out. Panic. " Swan!" No response. The clouds were gathering overhead. It was time to head for shelter. Elm couldn't. She had to find her mother. " Swan! Swan!" she raced forwards and peered down the whole, paws getting burnt by the ground. No scent of her mother. " Swan! Swan!" Her voice raised to a frantic pitch. Where was her mother? Elm turned her head. ''It can't be. ''Slumped there, head down, was Swan. " Swan, oh, Swan!" she raced forwards, nearly fainting in relief. " Mother! Who did this? I thought you died, you see. I... I..." she trailed off. Swan wasn't slumped over, she was on her side. Her beautiful silver fur was burnt black. Her skin was peeling, and.... it was awful. A sob shook Elm's body. What had Swan done to deserve this? She lowered her muzzle in sorrow. ''Swan, why did I leave you? Why did you leave me? ''Her grief was too much. And then she was hit by a blast of fury. " Who did this to you?!" Elm shrieked as the clouds parted and it began to rain. " Who did it Swan? Answer me! Why won't you answer me?" she collapsed onto the dirt, wailing in pain. Elm sniffed her mother's body. Through the smoke, through the blood, through the death... she smelled it. Impossible. But it was there. " They did this," she whispered brokenly. " HALO." The End Category:Warriorfan123's Fan fics Category:HALO Category:WFW 1 Category:WFW1